This is now the 9th year I have published this post for Freshman Gamers.

The transition to high school requires – “Self Control” and “Intentness” from the Pyramid of Success.  Attend class, learn, hand in assignments and study for tests. Being on time, focused, consistent and disciplined is 80% of the battle in the classroom (which sounds a lot like baseball!!)

========================================================

This post is for all 15u (current high school freshmen).  Parents, please make sure that your son reads this. This is a friendly reminder from the Gamers program that we care about you and your success.

Grades matter.  If you want to play college baseball, grades matter A LOT.   Time after time, we see that GPA’s and test scores make the the difference in the college recruiting process.  Coach Whiteside reviews the chart below in the Gamers college process meeting every Fall.

College coaches never ask about Batting Average or ERA.  They ALWAYS ask about GPA.

Now that you are a freshman, your grades now count toward your high school GPA.  A year from now college baseball coaches will start looking at you.  One of the first questions they will has is “how are your grades”. Three years from now, you will be filling out college applications.  Every college application will ask for your GPA and a copy of your high school transcript.

In baseball, your skill level and athleticism as a Freshman don’t matter a much as your skill & athleticism as a Sophomore and Junior. You have some time to work on those.

Unfortunately, GPA’s are different — they are cumulative.  Sometimes, freshman do not realize this simple fact — your grades as a freshman count JUST AS MUCH as your grades as a junior or senior. 

Here is an example for you.

Say a player gets the following GPA’s:
Freshman – 3.6
Soph – 3.2
Junior – 3.6
Senior – 3.2

The result of this would be an overall GPA of 3.4.  Pretty good (our 15u-17u Gamers have an an average GPA of 3.5).

But, say that same player got a 2.2 GPA his freshman year instead of a 3.6.  (ALL C’s and a couple B’s)

Do you what he would have to achieve during his sophomore, junior and senior years to graduate with the same 3.4 GPA?

To overcome this bad start, he would have to achieve a 3.8 GPA for all three years to pull his overall GPA up to a 3.4 by the end of his senior year.

So, his grades would need to look like this:
Freshman – 2.2
Soph – 3.7
Junior – 3.8
Senior – 3.9

Which scenario looks easier to you?

AND, when college coaches are actually recruiting this kid his GPA would still be under 3.0 because of his disasterous Freshman year.

Don’t put yourself in the situation of playing catch up.  It is hard to do.  Plus, freshman classes are a lot easier than junior and senior classes. It gets harder and harder every year to play catch up.

So, the point of this email is simple — Get off to a good start with grades during your freshman year. 

What are the common excuses that we hear about why players “mess up” during their freshman years?:

– They don’t hand in homework or “projects” (the easiest points to get).
– They procrastinate, waiting until the last minute for assignments and studying
– They have bad study habits (do not use their time efficiently)
– They spend more time on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram…. than on schoolwork
– The are not serious in the classroom, preferring to be the class clown

Essentially, they do not take school seriously and don’t put their best effort forward.  That is not consistent with being a Gamer.

It is now November  You are well into your first semester of high school.  If you are doing well, congratulations and keep up the good work!!

If you are not doing well so far, fix the problem RIGHT NOW.  Talk to guidance counselors, teachers and your parents.  Get a tutor.  Show that YOU CARE.  Fix the problem before it gets too late to impact first semester grades.  Your grades are not going to change unless you change something.  It is your responsibility.

Remember, these grades count and will be with you for the next 3 years. 

If the Gamers coaches or directors can help, let us know.  We see a lot of young men go through this process and know what works.  That is why I am sending out this email.

Getting off to a good start is one of the most important success factors in high school.  It is like throwing a first pitch strike.

Good luck as you wrap up your first semester,

Coach Gallion